From a Virginia swamp to Savannah's urban forest, The Last Bison wander

The 21-year-old frontman of The Last Bison, the seven-piece folk outfit that will open the Savannah Stopover Music Festival on March 7, grew up in Bolivia with his missionary dad, Dan, also a member of the band (banjo/guitar/mandolin), and the rest of their family. Today, Hardesty uses the toenails — they produce a crisp, dry shaker sound — as part of his act.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QjlEZ5lLuzY

They’re one of so many elements he’s gathered over the years that are reflected in The Last Bison’s clawing, earthy sound. An early love of Alison Krauss, Elton John and U2. A later affinity for bluegrass, stadium rock and hip-hop. “The area I’m from and the places I’ve seen,” Hardesty says.

“More than anything, our music comes from a geographical location,” he explains. “I love the area I’m from and its rich history. I live in the middle of this huge swamp with this lake formed by a peat fire.”

That’s Chesapeake, Va., a place Hardesty still calls home — a mixture of “suburbia and farmland,” as he puts it. There, in 2012, he and his father and his sister, Annah (bells and vocals), joined with longtime friends Jay and Andrew Benfante (percussion and organ) and string players Teresa Totheroh and Amos Housworth to release the band’s debut, “Quill.” That record featured the breakout track “Switzerland,” a sprawling indie-folk epic that showcases the group’s thoughtful instrumentation alongside the rasping ecstasy of Hardesty’s vocals. Republic Records quickly signed the band, and it’s been a blur since, Hardesty confesses.

On Feb. 14, when we spoke, The Last Bison were kicking off their North American tour with a sold-out show in the nation’s capital. Hardesty had just returned to Virginia from L.A., where he represented Republic at The Grammys.

“It’s been a scary transition,” he says, “because we’re kind of a family band and we originally wanted to own all our stuff. But the label has been great — to see these executives amped and psyched about our music, it’s really encouraging.

“I had a blast seeing everyone there play, even Taylor Swift, whose music I enjoy,” he says. “Sting came out with Bruno Mars and did an old Police song. It was awesome.”

The youngest member of The Last Bison, Jay Benfante, is 17, Hardesty notes, so they’re looking forward to kicking off Savannah Stopover with an all-ages show.

“We love all-ages shows,” he says. “I hate to alienate others. We played an age-restricted show in San Diego once, and they wouldn’t even let the whole band in until we got on stage. It was crazy.”

The visit to Savannah will be The Last Bison’s first, and it will come just one day after their full album “Inheritance” releases — with four new songs and new recordings of fan favorites like “Switzerland” and “Dark Am I.”

“We’re just a bunch of old rural boys and girls from Virginia,” Hardesty says.

They’ll be playing the Savannah Stopover kickoff at Ships of the Sea Maritime Museum. It will be dark, with a breeze blowing off the Savannah River, rattling the North Garden’s grove of orange trees like Bolivian goat toenails.